Hillcrest Christian School is a

private Private or privates may refer to: Music * " In Private", by Dusty Springfield from the 1990 album ''Reputation'' * Private (band), a Denmark-based band * "Private" (Ryōko Hirosue song), from the 1999 album ''Private'', written and also recorde ...

Christian school A Christian school is a school run on Christian principles or by a Christian organization. The nature of Christian schools varies enormously from country to country, according to the religious, educational, and political cultures. In some countr ...

Jackson, Mississippi Jackson, officially the City of Jackson, is the Capital city, capital of and the List of municipalities in Mississippi, most populous city in the U.S. state of Mississippi. The city is also one of two county seats of Hinds County, Mississippi, ...

, United States. The school traces its history to a segregation academy founded by the

White Citizens Council The Citizens' Councils (commonly referred to as the White Citizens' Councils) were an associated network of white supremacist, segregationist organizations in the United States, concentrated in the South and created as part of a white backlash ...

History

Racial segregation

Hillcrest was established in 1970 as a segregation academy in response to the court-ordered integration of public schools. In 1985, W.J Simmons, chair of the state

, discussed the history of the school with '' Clarion-Ledger''. Simons acknowledged that "Race was a motivating factor in the early days." Simmons also stated "admitting blacks lowers educational standards. Racial mixing is wrong when it's forced. And if it's not forced, it's not likely to occur." In the same article, headmaster Gary McGee said that he didn't know if the Hillcrest Christian school would admit black students and that if a black student applied for entrance, the matter would need to be discussed by the school's trustees. In 1987 the school refused to play a B team football game because the opponent, Natchez Trace, had a Black player.

Campus

The current campus was originally known as Council McCluer, which was a separate school opened the same year as Hillcrest. Council McCluer was part of a system of twelve schools in Jackson founded and run by the

Citizens' Council The Citizens' Councils (commonly referred to as the White Citizens' Councils) were an associated network of White supremacy, white supremacist, Racial segregation in the United States, segregationist organizations in the United States, concentra ...

of Jackson. For much of its early life, the school was located at Sykes Road and Wheatley Drive in south Jackson, and operated as a K-9 school. In 1985 the school merged with the McCluer Academy, another segregation academy. The combined school used the former McCluer Academy campus on Siwell Road for the high school and middle school. The school ultimately moved all operations to that campus and sold the Wheatley property in the late 1990s following the construction of an elementary school building at the Siwell campus.

Education

Hillcrest educates pupils from

kindergarten Kindergarten is a preschool educational approach based on playing, singing, practical activities such as drawing, and social interaction as part of the transition from home to school. Such institutions were originally made in the late 18th cent ...

3 to grade 12.

Notable alumni

Phil Bryant Dewey Phillip Bryant (born December 9, 1954) is an American politician who served as the 64th governor of Mississippi from 2012 to 2020. A member of the Republican Party, he was the 31st lieutenant governor of Mississippi from 2008 to 2012 and 4 ...

- Governor of Mississippi, withdrew from McCluer Academy before graduating. *

Taryn Foshee Taryn Leigh Foshee (born April 3, 1985), a Clinton, Mississippi native, is a beauty queen who won the 2003 Miss Clinton pageant while a pupil at Hillcrest Christian School and received a commendation from the Mississippi Legislature. Subsequent ...

- won the 2003

Miss Clinton Miss (pronounced ) is an English language honorific typically used for a girl, for an unmarried woman (when not using another title such as "Doctor" or "Dame"), or for a married woman retaining her maiden name. Originating in the 17th century, it ...

pageant while a pupil at Hillcrest Christian School and received a commendation from the

Mississippi Legislature The Mississippi Legislature is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Mississippi. The bicameral Legislature is composed of the lower Mississippi House of Representatives, with 122 members, and the upper Mississippi State Senate, with 52 me ...

; 2006 Miss Mississippi; 3rd runner-up in

Miss America Miss America is an annual competition that is open to women from the United States between the ages of 17 and 25. Originating in 1921 as a "bathing beauty revue", the contest is now judged on competitors' talent performances and interviews. As ...

2007Chris Joyner
"Miss Mississippi makes it to top 5 in Miss America pageant"
''Hattiesburg American'', February 15, 2007. *

Stephen Head Stephen Anthony Head (born January 13, 1984), is an American professional baseball scout and former infielder and outfielder, who is currently a scout of the Los Angeles Dodgers organization. He played college baseball at Ole Miss Rebels basebal ...

- minor league first basemen for

Cleveland Indians The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. Since , they have played at Progressive F ...

and winner of

Boo Ferris Award Boo is an onomatopoeic word for a loud, startling sound, as an exclamation intended to scare, or as a call of derision (see booing). Boo or BOO may also refer to: Places * Boo (Aller), parish in Asturias, Spain * Boo, standard abbreviation for ...

, given to Mississippi's top collegiate

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding tea ...

player *

Carlos Moncrief Carlos Antwan Moncrief (born November 3, 1988) is an American former professional baseball outfielder. Early life and family Carlos Antwan Moncrief was born in Jackson, Mississippi. His father, Homer, was drafted as a pitcher by the Detroit Tige ...

- outfielder for

San Francisco Giants The San Francisco Giants are an American professional baseball team based in San Francisco, California. The Giants compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Founded in 1883 as the New Yor ...

* Scott Savage - former drummer for multi-platinum, Grammy- and Dove Award-winning band Jars of Clay *

Seth Smith Garry Seth Smith (born September 30, 1982) is an American former professional baseball outfielder. He played Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Colorado Rockies, Oakland Athletics, San Diego Padres, Seattle Mariners and Baltimore Orioles. He w ...

- outfielder for

Oakland Athletics The Oakland Athletics (often referred to as the A's) are an American professional baseball team based in Oakland, California. The Athletics compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. The te ...

References

{{authority control Christian schools in Mississippi Private K-12 schools in Mississippi Schools in Jackson, Mississippi Educational institutions established in 1970 Private schools in the Jackson metropolitan area, Mississippi Segregation academies in Mississippi